Government mismanaged delayed PFI hospital projects, says spending watchdog

The government has been criticised for its handling of the growing costs of two delayed private finance initiative (PFI) hospital projects in England that were run by the former company Carillion.

The Royal Liverpool University Hospital and the Midland Metropolitan Hospital, in Sandwell, missed their completion deadlines by several years and were costing an extra £616m (€720m; $800m), said the public spending watchdog the National Audit Office, in a report into the rescue of the two PFI hospital contracts that Carillion was building at the time it collapsed.1 However, much of the extra cost will not be left to the taxpayer to meet, the NAO said.

Carillion went into liquidation in January 2018 with the loss of …